PocketCam

Free for Windows 11 · no phone app

Your phone is a Windows webcam.

Open PocketCam, scan the QR with Safari or Chrome, allow the camera. OBS, Discord, Zoom, Teams and the Windows Camera app see a camera named PocketCam. Same Wi-Fi — no accounts, no cloud, no cable.

Download for Windows 11 How it works

Phone browser→your PC→any webcam app

PocketCam on Windows, live, showing the phone's picture in the preview PocketCam phone page in Safari, live, with camera, resolution and FPS controls

How it works

Three steps.

The phone side is just a web page served by PocketCam on your PC. Keep it open while you are live.

  1. Install on your PC

    Run PocketCamSetup.exe. It registers the virtual camera and a private-network firewall rule, then open PocketCam from the Start menu.

  2. Scan the QR on your phone

    Use Safari on iPhone or Chrome on Android. Continue past the certificate warning — it is for this PC — then tap Start camera.

  3. Pick “PocketCam” in your app

    Choose PocketCam as the camera in OBS, Discord, Zoom, Teams or Windows Camera. That's it.

PocketCam on Windows waiting for the phone, with a large QR code and session token
Windows — waiting for the phone, with QR and token
PocketCam phone page ready, with the session token and a Start camera button
Phone — Start camera

Features

A real webcam, without the phone app.

Everything runs between your phone and your PC on your own network.

Zero install on the phone

Safari on iPhone, Chrome on Android. A Home Screen shortcut is optional — it is still the browser.

Your LAN only

The stream never leaves your Wi-Fi or phone hotspot. No accounts, no cloud. Google STUN stays off unless you turn it on.

A real Windows camera

Shows up as PocketCam in any app that can pick a webcam. No plugins needed.

Up to 4K, up to 60 fps

Pick 480p through 4K. The default is 1080p30 — free, with no watermark.

Record the original stream

Saves the phone's H.264 to MP4 — not a second encode — in Videos\PocketCam or a folder you choose.

Stays in the tray

Close the window and the camera keeps running until you choose Exit.

Get started

What you need.

PocketCam v1 is a Windows 11 app for one phone at a time, over Wi-Fi.

Requirements

  • A Windows 11 PC
  • iPhone with Safari, or Android with Chrome
  • Phone and PC on the same Wi-Fi — or the PC on the phone's hotspot
  • H.264 in the browser (Chrome and Safari send it; Firefox is untested)

Not in v1: USB, a virtual microphone, Windows 10, or several phones at once.

Install

  1. Download PocketCamSetup.exe from the latest GitHub Release.
  2. If SmartScreen appears: More info → Run anyway.
  3. Open PocketCam from the Start menu and scan the QR.
Download for Windows 11 Release notes

FAQ

Troubleshooting.

Why does the phone show a certificate warning?

It is expected. PocketCam uses a certificate for this PC, not a public website. Continue past the warning and the phone page opens.

Windows SmartScreen blocked the installer.

Unsigned builds can show SmartScreen. Click More info, then Run anyway. Only download the installer from the official GitHub Releases.

The camera stopped when I locked the phone or switched apps.

Phones stop the camera when the page is gone — that is iOS and Android, not PocketCam. Keep the PocketCam page open in the foreground. While you are live, it holds a Screen Wake Lock so auto-lock does not end the session.

The phone can't reach the PC.

Make sure both are on the same Wi-Fi, or put the PC on the phone's hotspot. The installer adds a Windows Firewall rule for a private network. PocketCam also lets you choose which network address the QR points to.

I changed the resolution and the picture disappeared in OBS.

After switching between 720p, 1080p and 4K, pick PocketCam once more in that app. You don't need to restart OBS.

The phone disconnected. Do I need a new QR?

No. The same token works for about five minutes. New session makes a new one, and Show QR brings the code back.

Where do recordings go?

To Videos\PocketCam as pocketcam-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS.mp4, or to another folder you pick in Settings. Recording starts on the next keyframe.